Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-02-25
RENTED REVELRY.
Facts Abent the French Balls Of New
York-Hijarious Vice Hired at
So Much per Hour.
Professional Dancers Engaged to Do the
Can Can, While silly Gudgeons I'M
sgine ,h- Thing Is Genuins.
Providence Journal.

Providence Journal.
New York is now in the season of thu
French balls, name given to 4 round o
two or three great French assemble.
and two or three assemblies Of the demi
monde OF both sexes. These balls arr
not what they are put up to be. They
are not tirst-clsss opportunities for in
dulging IN Wickedness. All the vice there
is in them is made TO order, hired anC
| exhibited like q stage performance.
In order TO understand these curious
! balls let us understand one from its ill.,
cepuon. The company getting it up is
! formed either out of club or an especial
! syndicate of spectators who are backed
| by liquor dealers, agents of foreign wines
or American whiskies and cigar msnufac-
| turers. Ether that or they go into the
scheme to sell out the bar and restaurant
privileges for enough money 10 in
sure handsome profit before a cent is
! expended. Next the Academy of Music
is rented and the date advertised. After
this the town is flooded with tickets.
These are always notable works of art,
SNOWY pictures OF can-can or merry
group of reckless mashers. These
pictures are either suggestive or
downright vicious. In some years
they are not too bad to show to a
lady-in other years they are. However,
ladies have nothing to do with French
balls. The tickets are marked "Price
S." and hundreds of gudgeons buy them,
but no one who understands the game
ever thinks of paying for one. They are
distributed among the principal bar
rfNfN md ,Nlo - j
peddled or given away by the bar-tenders
and demi-monde. The FOUNDERS about
town are not fools enough to pay, know
ing, as they do, that when they have
lunched their partners ana paid for the
wine and hat and cloak checks they are
certain to be at least $50 or perhaps $50
ont. Therefore they go TO the ball mar
ager or their faverite bar man aud get q
ticket for nothing.
When the night arrives the parquet at
the Academy is boarded over. French
and other flags, and shields bearing
comic pictures, ard stands of flowers,
and perhaps fountain of scented water,
have given the great theater ballroom
appearance: Bands are scattered about on
the stage and in the galleries a lot
of hired masker- form g procession, AID
the other maskers fall in behind These
other maskers are women Of evil lives and
young college students, bartend-
ers, boyish debauches and silly
countrymeu. The adult New Yorker
never appears except in even
ing dress, and insists that his female
friend shall 90 ia regular ballroom attire.
He never dances, ard he does not permit
her to do So, as rule. There are some
comic stage performances and balIet or
two, and the the ball begins. But it lau-
cuisines. The public sits around in
the boxes looking on, or in the gal
lery seats drinking. The dancers
are few, and men are sent around 10 urge
people TO dance, lest the thing be a fat
failure. Countrymen are promised part
ners, and the college boys and gilded
stripplings are only too esger to Join the
others, never expecting that these others
are hired for from 81 to $50 for the night,
according to what sCrt of dancing they
have to do.
1t is garrulous, dubious, dubious
crowd that you find yourself in. You
would have to be very peculiar man if
you could complocently imagine having
your name printed among the names Of
tie others. The women around you are
all OF the loud and staggering stamp,
and the men are such as you despise or
shun for various reasons. You notice that
the men about town from the Hoffman
House bar-room and the fast clubs are
not present. Wait until between mid
night and l O'Clock and you will see
them. At that time the great theater be-
comes packed and by host OF men in
evening dress, who bring no wOneJ, out
who drink almost as fast as repeating
rifle can shoot. Their idea has been to
keep away until the crowd has lunched
and IS half tipsy. Then is to come the
widely advertised excitement.
1t comes, but, as l said, 1t pals. 1t is
too transparency fraudulent for endur-
anCe. Men from other parts OF the
country, who never saw deceDcy set at
naught in public, swallow it, and perhaps
feel delicious sense of danger and guAt
waile looking at or sharing in ib
and so do the striplings, TO whom alhI
OF life is new. BuEs what is it?
Why, for instance, u suddenly a
quadrilIe or waltz breaks up. and
everybody PUSHES TO thes middle OF the
floor, where, lii the boilowofa circle half
q dozen rows deep, 8 n1anland woman are
dancing 2 csntoan. Both seem slightly
tipsy apdswhalIy Reckless She thrasnes
the aifwith her sSigts, never letting 20 of
them, bHtFaisf1g and swaying and toss
ing thefnSm adlyWhile she piruuettes, and
son etiIneS,. kicks above her head. He
dances int exact time with her, and
uses psnteInimic actions that it is not
necessary or permissible to describe.
The crowd bre&kS and runs to another
place where tall man is dancing with
Young girl in a balloon-like dress of
bright scarlet At times he catches both
her" hands and vaults her over his Shout
ders. Perhaps she ends her performance
with somcrssult. Il is sometimes done.
"Who is he? Who is she?" the voices
cry. i
"Whv, he's broker, and she's cleIk.t
in Broadway candy store" the whispaf
runs. y
Bah. how silly. Can not every onsSee |
that this is commercial vice, rented oy the |
night; that this man is professional attn |
lete and dancer, and the woman is his
or partner in business, g bal |
let dancer, or Circus-rider, or athlete? |
Every now and then there is q genuine !
bit OF 6elirium. Some young woman, |
full Of wine, rushes upon the Waxed |
floor, and grssping her skirts begins 9
csn-can. But see, al orderly puts his |
hsnds on her shoulders and marches her |
of the floor. It she does net behave |
after tina: she will he marched out into !
the street. There must be nothing gen
uine. Tina would not be French. 1t |
mis- 1t be g0vernAhle; nobody knows !
wbs = happen if people were ST. |
low qlis0enave for nothing. But |
hiTi havioT is another thing.
| , suggestive. after 81. The |
air rs only indulge in certain limit !
ed vagaries. Watch IS long a. you viii, /
the hired dalcerS will cot oversteD 3 ceI- .